Two-temperature refrigerator



July 21, 1953 L. A. PHILIPP 2,645,909 'Two-TmPERAwRE REFRIGERATOR Filed Oct. 19, 1951 3 Sheets-Sheet l IN V EN TOR.

Lumen: A- PHIL/PP July 21, 1953 L. A. PHILIPP TWO-TEMPERATURE REFRIGERATOR Filed Oct. 19, 1951 s Sheets-Sheet 2 A r I RM M 2, 14 H m m e m w z A. PHILIPP TWO-TDIPERATURE REFRIGERATOR July 21, 1953 Filed Oct. 19, 1951 s Sheets-Sheet s INVENTOR. .g uesm 1Q Pwz/PP Irrwnvry Patented July 21, 1953 T WO-TEMPERATURE REFRIGERATOR Lawrence A, Philiim, Detroit, Mich, assignor to Nash-Kelvinator Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a corporation-f Maryland Application-October 19, 1951,. SerialN'o; 252,145

4 Claims. (Cl. 62-103.)

removabl pa-rtitionrhaving arear edge spaced.

from the cabinet rear wallto provide an air passage and having a damper hinged to therear edge of the partition to;control the air passage. Another object-of the invention is to. provide an improved combined air b-afiie and; damper for use in separating freezing and food-storage compartments and for controlling; the circulation of air therebetween.

v Another object, of the invention; isgto' provide an improved combined drip pan-v and air circulating control damper in which the damper is hinged to the pan externally thereof and has a raised or closed position in an. air flow space between an edge .of the pan and a. Wall of. the cabinetto decrease air-flow, and has a. lowered or open position xternally. of the pan to in crease air fiow.

, Another object of the-invention is, to provide vin a refrigerator, an improved-combined drippan and air-circulating control damper in which the damper is pivoted to and within the pan to lie therein in open position and movable to a closed position outside the panto decrease air flow between the wall of the refrigerator and an adjacent edge of the pan. 7

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein a preferred form of the present invention is clearly shown. g

In the drawings: 7 I Fig. 1 is a front view partly broken away of a refrigerator embodying features of my inven tion;

Fig. 2 is a side view of the refrigerator partly broken away and in'section to show units of the refrigerating system;

Fig. 3 is-a'horizontal sectionalview of--the-rein which multiple temperatures. are

frigerator, taken along lline 3--3* of Fig. I showingmy improvedair battle-damper unit in plan;

Fig. 4 isa' vertical-- sectional viewof the air baffle-damper unit, taken along theline tl of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary elevational view of the air baflle-damper unit, takenin thedirection of the arrows 55-of- Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view of th'e air baffledamper unit, taken along line 6-6'of--Fig= 5;

Fig. 7 is a horizontal sectional view ofthe air bafiie-damperunit, takenalong line- I -7" of Fig. 6;

Fig; 8: is a vertical sectional View of the air bathe-damper unit, taken along line 8-8 of Fig. 5;

' Fig. 9 is a view similar to Fig. 6 showing the damper in open position; I

Fig. 10 is a sectionalv-iew... similar to-Fig-4 of a modification of the air bafile damper unit, showing the. damperin open position;

Fig. 11 is an enlarged: fragmentary plan view of the. modified airb'afiledamper unit, showing the damper in. open position;

ratus of the household type having a cabinet 20, and a refrigerating. system. including a ref-riger ant evaporator 22., .a refrigerant: condensing ele-v ment 24, anda motor-compressor unit-26. The evaporator 22.: is. locatedv within the cabinet 20 adjacent the top thereof; thecondensingelement 24.is1ocated at the backof the cabinet;

and: the motor-compressor unit 26 is housed within amachineryv compartment 28 of thecab-- inet, adjacent .th bottom; thereof. Refrigerant supply: and return: conduits 30 and 32 connect the evaporator 2 2-.'and condensing element 2t to Preferably, the-supply conduit 30 isa' small diameter or capillary tube adapted to supether.

ply liquid. refrigerant. from the condensing element 24 inproper amounts to theevapor'ator 22 to maintain desired refrigeration thereof.

The present cabinet construction comprises, in general, a metal casing 34 and a metal liner-36- separated by suitableheat insulatingmaterial 38. The casing 34 and liner 3fi-are box-shaped having adjacent spaced-= edges spannedprefer =ably by heat breaker strips 40 which-extend" in closed po--.

drawings by characters of reference. there is shown afirefrigerating appaalong the sides, top and bottom of the cabinet at the front thereof giving also a finished appearance to the cabinet. A door access opening at the front of the cabinet is closed by a door 42 which is hinged to one of the cabinet side walls, as at 44.

The evaporator 22 may comprise a refrigerant coil or conduit .46 and an extended heat absorbing member in the form of a metal box-like container 48. As shown, the evaporator coil 46 is wound about the container 48 in a. manner to extend along and in contact with the top, bottom and sides thereof. Suitable'clamps, cement or other means may be usedtonsecure the coil 46 to the walls of container 48 to insure efiicient heat transfer by conduction therebetween.

Any suitable type of condensing element may be used in the refrigerator, such as 'the sealed type motor-compressor unit 26 and a condenser coil 52. In the usual manner, liquid refrigerant from the condenser 52 is delivered by the capillary tube 30 to the evaporator 22 where evaporation takes place, the resultant gaseous refrigerant being returned to the condenser 52 by the return conduit 32 and motorcompressor unit 26.

Preferably, the evaporator 22 extends across the cabinet substantially to the side walls thereof, and also extends substantially from the door 42 to the rear wall of the cabinet with suitable space provided between the evaporator top and front surfaces and the liner surfaces to allow for circulation of air around the evaporator 22. In addition to functioning as an extended:heat absorbing member of the evaporator coil 46, the

container 48 forms a chamber wherein ice may be made in suitable trays (not shown) and wherein foods may be frozen. Also, the capacity of evaporator coil 46 is made such that the evaporator 22 will refrigerate, by air convection, foods to be stored below the evaporator 22 or in a food storage compartment 50 formed in part by the inner wall surfaces of liner 36. If desired the food storage compartment 50 may be additionally cooled by a secondary refrigerating system as disclosed and described in my Patent Number 2,361,792 issued October 31, 1944.

Disposed below and adjacent the underside of evaporator 22, I provide a horizontal partition or air bafile, designated generally by the numeral 54 which separates the evaporator 22 from and forms the top wall of the food storage compartment 50. The air baffle 54 extends substantially to the liner sides, but is spaced from door 42, as at 58, and from the liner rear wall, as at 60, to provide air passages for circulation of air between the food storage compartment 50 and evaporator 22 to obtain cooling of the former by convection. Relatively cold air descends from the freezing compartment at the back of evaporator 22 through passage 60 into the food storage compartment 50 and relatively warm air flows up the front of the cabinet near the inner side of the door 42 about the evaporator 22 and moisture in the air is deposited as frost on the evaporator 22 so that continued circulation tends to dehumidify the air.

The air baflie 54 comprises, in general, a pan structure 64 and a damper 66. The damper 66 is pivotally attached to the rear edge of pan 64 and is manually operable to control the flow of air through passage 60 so that the rate of air circulation between the food storage compartment 50 and the evaporator 22 may be regulated to in turn regulate the humidity in the food storage a ant.

Suitable slideways or rails 68 are secured to the sides of the liner 36 to support the air bafiie 54 which is removable by sliding it forwardly on slideways 68 out of the cabinet doorway. Rearwardly facing abutments I0 on the baflle sides are arranged to abut the front ends of the slideways 68 as a stop to limit the extent to which the baffle 54 may be slid into the cabinet and thus determine the minimum width of the air passage 60.

The pan 64 is generally rectangular in shape as seen in plan (Fig. 3) and in the present construction, the pan is made in two sections comprising, an upper pan member I2 and a bottom pan member I4. Also in the present construction, the pan members I2, 14 are made of plastic material and between them is preferably provided suitable heat insulation I6 to decrease heat transfer between the food storage compartment 50 and the evaporator 22. The pan sections I2, I4 may be secured together by any suitable cement or by any other suitable means. Pan 64 also serves as a drip receiver during defrosting operation of the evaporator 22 and the upper pan member I2 is preferably provided with upstanding water retainer and reinforcing front, side and rear flanges I6, and 82 respectively. Also, the upper pan member I2 is preferably inclined from the front thereof downwardly to its rear flange 82 to drain water to a drain outlet 84 from which the water may drain into a removable and smaller container 86 that is preferably supported on the top shelf 88 of the food storage compartment 50. A defrost water drain trough 81 is mounted on the liner rear wall to receive water which runs down the liner during the defrosting period. This trough 81 is spaced directly above the damper 66 to prevent water from dripping into the food storage compartment and has a spout 69 overhanging pan 64 to discharge the defrost water thereinto, preferably at the pan drain outlet 84.

The damper 66 extends along the rear edge of pan 64 substantially co-extensive therewith and is attached to the pan by hinges 90 of which there are three in the present construction. As shown in Fig. 9, the damper 66 has an open position in which it is in a vertical position against the pan rear flange 82 and as shown in Fig. 4 has a closed orraised position in which the damper extends into air circulating passage 60 to decrease the flow capacity thereof. In raised damper position, the rear edge of the damper 66 is slightly spaced, as at 92, from the rear wall of liner 36 to allow a minimum of air circulation between food storage compartment 50 and evaporator 22.

Hinges 90 each comprise a hinge member 94 on pan 64 and hinge pintles 96 formed tegral with damper 66 at the rear edge thereof. The hinge member 94 is formed integral with the pan rear flange 82 and includes a supporting or bearing wall portion 98 to receive the pintles 96, the wall portion 93 being slightly inclined upwardly and rearwardly and having a rear upstanding end or flange 99. Also formed integral with the pan rear flange 82 and with wall portion 98 is an upright boss I00 midway between the end edges of portion 98 to reinforce the same and to pro d support for a retainer plate I02 which seats flat on the top of the boss I00 and on edges of flanges 82 and 99 to provide pintle retainers I03. The plate I 02 is secured to the boss I00 by a screw I04. It will be seen that the pintle retainers I03 are elongated from the pan rear flange 82 rearwardly to allow the damper 66v tobe moved bodily toward and away from the pan 64. as well as to allow the damper to pivot.

The damper 66 has a clearance opening I06 of general rectangular shape at its hinged edge for clearance with the pan hinge member 94 and extending from opposite side edges of opening I06 toward each other, the pintles 96 have their ends, as at 91, spaced apart for clearance with the boss I00. On the hinge member flange 99, upwardly facing seats I08 are provided at opposite side edges of the flange to receive abutments H0 on the damper 66. The abutments H0 are formed integral and coplanar with the damper 66 and are positioned to rest on seats I08 to hold the damper in raised position, as shown for example in Fig. 6. At their front edges, the abutments I I0 have downwardly directed edges H2 to hook behind the upstanding edges of flange 99 adjacent seats I08 to retain the damper 66 on the seats. In this position of damper 06 it will be noted that the pintles 96 engage against the underside of the retainer plate 64, as shown in Fig. '6, to aid in holding the damper on the seats I08.

To change the position of the damper 66, assuming for example that the humidity in the food storage compartment is higher than desired, the baffle unit is withdrawn from the cabinet and the damper 66 is lowered by first raising it slightly until the hooked end abutments II2 clear seats I08 and by then moving the damper bodily rearwardly until the abutments clear the seats I08 after which the damper may be swung down flat against the pan rear flange 82, as shown in Fig. 9. With the passage 60 now open, increased rate of air circulation will be had between the food storage compartment 50 and the evaporator 22 during which additional moisture will be frozen out of the circulating air on the evaporator and consequently lower the humidity of the food storage compartment 50.

Referring now to the modification shown y Figs. 10 to 13 inclusive, this construction is similar to the preferred form and therefor like parts have been designated by like reference numerals to avoid unnecessary repetitious description. In the modification, the bafiie or pan, designated generally by numeral II4 has a rear upstanding flange II6 integral with which are a number of bosses H8 of which only one is shown. These bosses H 8 are spaced horizontally along the Dan rear flange H6 and extend inwardly therefrom. Each of the bosses H8 is provided with a groove or bearing I20 in its upper end and these bearings are in alignment to receive respectively aligned pintles I22 on a damper I24. The pintles I22 are preferably formed integral with the damper I24 near one longitudinal edge thereof and are retained in the bearings I20 by retainer plates I26 which are secured to the upper ends of bosses I I8 by screws I28. In open position of the damper I24 as illustrated in Fig. 10, the damper lies within and flat on the bottom of the pan, whereas in walls, a horizontal drip pan within said cabinet cooperating with said walls to form an upper freezing compartment and a lower food stora compartment, said drip pan having opposite ed respectively spaced from adjacent opposite walls of said cabinet to allow for circulation of air between said freezing and food storage compartments, a damper hinged to said drip pan and movable to a raised position extending from one closed position, the damper rests on the upper I edge of pan rear flange I I6 which holds t damper in closed position in passage 00, as shown in Fig. 13, decreasing the rate of air flow through said passage.

of said edges toward the adjacent cabinet wall to decrease air circulation, and a drip trough extending along said adjacent cabinet wall overlying said damper and discharging into said drip pan.

2. In refrigerating apparatus having a cabinet, a partition for separating a freezing compartment and a food storage compartment within the cabinet comprising, a pan, an external boss on said pan, an upwardly facing seat on said boss spaced from said pan, a damper pivoted to said boss having raised and lowered positions, the pivoted connection between said boss and damper being loose toallow said damper to be moved bodily toward and away from said pan, and a seating portion on said damper to rest on said seat to hold said damper in raised position and engageable with said seat When said damper s moved toward said pan.

3. In refrigerating apparatus having a cabinet, a partition for separating a freezing compartment and a food storage compartment from each other, comprising, a pan, an external boss extending from one edge of said pan having an upwardly directed portion spaced from said pan edge, a

' damper extension of said pan edge movable to a raised position or to a lowered position, a pintle on' said damper loosely engaging between said pan edge and said upwardly directed portion to allow said damper to be moved bodily toward and away from said pan edge, a seat on said upwardly directed portion, and a seating portion on said damper to engage said seat when said damper is in raised position and toward said pan edge.

4. In a refrigerator, a cabinet having side and rear walls, a horizontal pan within said cabinet separating freezing and food storage compartments from each other, said pan having opposite edges thereof spaced respectively from opposite walls of the'cabinet to effect air circulation between said freezing and food storage compartments, a boss within said pan adjacent one of said edges, a damperhinged to said boss having an open position seating on and within said pan and having a position projecting into one of said spaces toward the adjacent cabinet wall to decrease air circulation, a seat on the upper edge of said pan adjacent said boss to receive and hold said damper in said last-named position and inclined downwardly to said pan to drain drip water thereinto, said damper having an edge spaced from said adjacent cabinet wall to effect restricted air flow, and a drip deflector on said adjacent cabinet wall overlying said damper and directing flow into said pan.

LAWRENCE A. PHILIPP.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,727,777 Juneau Sept. 10, 1929 2,292,032 Atchison Aug. 4, 1942 2,562,057 Norberg July 24, 1951 2,581,618 Anderson et al. Jan. 8, 1952 

